Video: music teacher teaches Gaza kids to harmonise to the sound of Israeli drones

“In these moments, we forget the war” – heartbreaking and inspiring

A music teacher in Gaza is teaching children how to harmonise over the sounds of the Israeli spy and bomb drones that constantly infest the air over Palestinian civilians, as a way to lift their minds out of the horror of war for a few moments.

Ahmed Abu Amsha is a teacher with the Edward Said National Conservatory of Music, who – along with other instructors – has continued to teach lessons and organize musical events for displaced Palestinians. He told Al Jazeera’s AJ+ that:

“In these moments, we forget the war.”

Ahmed founded the Gaza Birds Singing group, helping children learn their craft and find some joy under Israel’s genocide, starvation and bombardment.

The Edward Said National Conservatory of Music has been Gaza’s main music school since it opened a branch there in 2012. Before the genocide it trained hundreds of students in various music disciplines and sent top talents to perform abroad with the Palestine Youth Orchestra. Its Gaza City building was destroyed by the occupation forces and many of its students killed, including well-known 14-year-old violinist Lubna Alyaan.

Despite the murder and destruction, the school’s teachers refuse to give up and now conduct music lessons in tents, displacement camps, and damaged classrooms using salvaged instruments or creating drums made from empty cans and containers.

As inspiring as it is heartbreaking. Israel is a terror state and the people of Gaza put it and the racist Zionism that underpins it to shame.

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